Tips on straight draw in Omaha high poker. The 1st Part

The difference between Omaha and holdem is the most evident in drawing a straight. Potentially great size of a straight draw in Omaha high poker can raise its chances, and a draw may become in advantage over a pat hand very often. In holdem maximum missing cards to a straight are 8.

Omaha Holdem is not blackjack online, so if you need 8 cards for a straight your hand is considered as suspicious as a gutshot straight in all poker forms. In Omaha high poker 13-sided or 17-sided straight is considered a usual situation, and in a good dealing a 20-sided straight is possible. Let’s look at the example of such a situation:

Your hand

Flop

Queen, jack, 10, 7, 6 or 5 – 24 cards giving you a straight. Four of them you’ve already got in your hand; so there are 20 cards in the pack, which can give you a straight. Such 20-sided straight on condition that there are two more cards to appear on the board will form in 70% of cases.

Such situation doesn’t mean that drawing your straight you will get a monster. On the fourth or fifth card a pair can appear on the board or two cards suited with one on the board, and then somebody gets an opportunity of a flush. A pair or a three-card flush on the board are more dangerous in Omaha than in holdem and you may easily be bluffed even if your hand is the best. (If it is usual for you to pay off in a situation where someone presents a flush or a full against your straight in Omaha high poker, may be you’d better take up Keno or dice).

I want to offer you several standard draw situations and the number of cards that will fit your hand (x is used for insignificant cards, less valuable than other).

Hand

Flop

Cards

(A) J 10 7 х

9 8 х

17

(B) 10 7 6 х

9 8 х

17

(C) Q J 10 х

9 8 х

13

(D) 7 6 5 х

9 8 х

13

Some conclusions and tips as for a straight in Omaha high poker

1) The number of ways to draw a straight is getting bigger if flop is “surrounded”, in other words if your cards follow the board cards, i.e. they directly higher and lower than the flop cards and not just higher or just lower them. If your cards are next to the flop cards, then you have an open-ended straight draw. This combination is highly valuable in Omaha because it creates giant drawing situations.

2) Of course it’s better to have several cards that are higher than the flop ones. It doesn’t increase the number of missing cards but can provide you with advantages, because if you happen to draw a straight it can become impossible to beat. In the B example if you draw your straight with a jack or 7, someone may draw a higher straight. In the D example 10, 7 or 6 may bring your opponent a straight higher than that of yours.